This invention relates to an hermetically sealed container having a closure connected to the container by a frangible web and, more particularly, to such a container provided with a unitary drop-dispenser.
Hermetically sealed containers with unitary closures are known. Such containers typically have a body portion, a top or neck portion, and a closure portion to close and seal the opening in the neck portion. It is also known to provide such containers with means for permitting the containers to be unsealed and opened by breaking off the closure portion at the top of the container.
To facilitate the opening of such a container, a frangible web is typically provided between the container neck portion and the closure portion. The frangible web comprises a reduced thickness region in the wall of the material forming the container. Such a container can be opened by twisting or bending a part of the container on one side of the frangible web so as to rupture or sever the reduced thickness region of material at the frangible web.
Containers incorporating the above-described frangible web structure are usually formed from a thermoplastic molding material such as polyethylene (low or high density), polypropylene, or like materials compatible with the contents of the container. Such containers are conventionally fabricated by blow molding or vacuum forming in split mold parts that close along a parting plane.
The frangible web can be formed by conventional techniques during the container molding processes. Of course, before the top closure is molded, the container is filled with the desired contents from a filling tube. A typical formed, filled and sealed container of this type is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,763 to Weiler et al. This patent also discloses the fabrication process as well as the apparatus therefor.
The above-described hermetically sealed, thermoplastic containers are used to package a variety of materials. Such containers have been found to be especially suitable for use in dispensing sterile fluids, such as pharmaceutical solutions and ointments. While these conventional containers function satisfactorily for the purposes for which they have been designed, it would be desirable if the advantages offered by such hermetically sealed containers could be employed in other applications. Specifically, it would be beneficial to be able to use such a container for dispensing drops of fluid of uniformly repeatable size. This would assure the consistent dispensing of a measured quantity of a pharmaceutical solution, for example.
However, the use of such containers for dispensing drops has not been altogether satisfactory. When the closure is removed from the container by tearing or twisting the closure along the connecting frangible web, the exposed dispensing orifice or aperture on the container may be surrounded by a relatively rough, uneven, or jagged region which defines the surface at the broken frangible web. Such uneven orifices may interfere with the formation of uniformly repeatable drops from a given container, and may contribute to a variation in drop size from one container to another depending on the vagaries of the broken frangible web. Furthermore, the geometry of the neck of the container adjacent the drop-dispensing orifice or aperture may not be conducive to the formation of stable, controllable drops of predictable and repeatable size.
It would be desirable to provide an improved hermetically sealed container with the convenience of a twist-off closure that also includes a unitary drop-dispenser for reliable and repeatable dispensing of drops of predictable size.
The present invention provides the aforementioned desirable benefits and features.
The present invention provides an hermetically sealed container having a closure connected to the container by a frangible web and is provided with a unitary drop dispenser.
A unitary, hermetically sealed container of a thermoplastic material, suitable for dropwise dispensing of a liquid contained therein, includes a hollow container body defining a liquid enclosure and provided with a dispensing nozzle unitary therewith at a proximal end. A hollow, campanulate chamber is provided at the distal end of the nozzle. The dispensing nozzle defines a liquid flow passageway in communication with the liquid enclosure and with the chamber, and has a substantially uniform inside diameter. The hollow, campanulate chamber has a maximum inside diameter that is larger than the inside diameter of the liquid flow passageway and defines a drop dispensing aperture having an inside diameter that is smaller than the inside diameter of the liquid flow passageway.
The drop dispensing aperture is defined by an annular flange connected to a closure cap at a frangible web that surrounds the dispensing aperture. The drop dispensing aperture is exposed for dropwise dispensing of the contents of container by fracturing the frangible web and removing the closure cap.